Sukhdev Thapar (15 May 1907 – 23 March 1931) was an Indian revolutionary who worked to make
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
independent from the
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
*
* it is also called Crown rule in India,
*
*
*
*
or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...
along with his best friends and partners
Bhagat Singh
Bhagat Singh (27 September 1907 – 23 March 1931) was a charismatic Indian revolutionary*
* who participated in the mistaken murder of a junior British police officer
*
* in what was to be retaliation for the death of an Indian nationa ...
and
Shivaram Rajguru
Shivaram Hari Rajguru (24 August 1907 – 23 March 1931) was an Indian revolutionary from Maharashtra (then Bombay State), known mainly for his involvement in the assassination of a British police officer named John Saunders. He was an active m ...
. A senior member of the
Hindustan Socialist Republican Association
Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA), previously known as the Hindustan Republican Army and Hindustan Republican Association (HRA), was an Indian revolutionary organisation founded by Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan, Sachindra ...
, he participated in several actions alongside Singh and Rajguru, and was hanged by the
British government
ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd
, image = HM Government logo.svg
, image_size = 220px
, image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
, image_size2 = 180px
, caption = Royal Arms
, date_es ...
on 23 March 1931 at the age of 23.
Early life
Sukhdev Thapar was born in
Ludhiana
Ludhiana ( ) is the most populous and the largest Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab. The city has an estimated population of 1,618,879 2011 Indian census, 2011 census and distributed over , making Ludhiana the ...
,
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
,
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
*
* it is also called Crown rule in India,
*
*
*
*
or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...
on 15 May 1907 to Ramlal Thapar and Ralli Devi.
He belonged to a Punjabi Khatri family of Hindu
community
A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...
and he was brought up by his uncle Lala Achintram after the death of his father.
Revolutionary activities
Hindustan Socialist republican association
Sukhdev Thapar was a member of the
Hindustan Socialist Republican Association
Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA), previously known as the Hindustan Republican Army and Hindustan Republican Association (HRA), was an Indian revolutionary organisation founded by Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan, Sachindra ...
(HSRA) and
Naujawan Bharat Sabha
Naujawan Bharat Sabha (NBS, sometimes spelled Nau Jawan Bharat Sabha, with the acronym NJBS) ( Youth Society of India) was a left-wing Indian association that sought to foment revolution against the British Raj by gathering together worker and pe ...
(NJSB), and organised revolutionary cells in Punjab and other areas of North India.
He was the chief of Punjab unit of HSRA and instrumental in taking decisions.
Sukhdev participated in numerous revolutionary activities such as a prison hunger strike in 1929; he is best known for his assaults in the Lahore Conspiracy Case (1929–30).
He is best remembered for his involvement in the assassination of Assistant Superintendent of Police, J. P. Saunders, on 17 December 1928, by
Bhagat Singh
Bhagat Singh (27 September 1907 – 23 March 1931) was a charismatic Indian revolutionary*
* who participated in the mistaken murder of a junior British police officer
*
* in what was to be retaliation for the death of an Indian nationa ...
and
Shivaram Rajguru
Shivaram Hari Rajguru (24 August 1907 – 23 March 1931) was an Indian revolutionary from Maharashtra (then Bombay State), known mainly for his involvement in the assassination of a British police officer named John Saunders. He was an active m ...
,
undertaken in response to the violent death of the veteran leader
Lala Lajpat Rai
Lala Lajpat Rai (28 January 1865 - 17 November 1928) was an Indian author, freedom fighter, and politician. He played a vital role in the Indian Independence movement. He was popularly known as Punjab Kesari. He was one of the three members of ...
.
Lahore Conspiracy Case
Sukhdev was the prime accused in the Lahore Conspiracy Case of 1929, whose official title was "Crown versus Sukhdev and others." The first information report (FIR) of the case, filed by Hamilton Harding, Senior Superintendent of police, in the court of R.S. Pandit, the Special Magistrate in April 1929, mentions Sukhdev as accused number 1. It describes him as Swami alias villager, son of Ram Lal, caste Thapar
Khatri
Khatri is a caste of the Indian subcontinent that is predominantly found in India, but also in Pakistan and Afghanistan. In the subcontinent, they were mostly engaged in mercantilistic professions such as banking and trade, they were the d ...
.
After the Central Assembly Hall bombings in New Delhi (8 April 1929), Sukhdev and his accomplices were arrested, convicted, and sentenced to death.
![Bhagat Singh's execution Lahore Tribune Front page](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/Bhagat_Singh%27s_execution_Lahore_Tribune_Front_page.jpg)
On 23 March 1931, Thapar was hanged in
Lahore Central Jail, along with
Bhagat Singh
Bhagat Singh (27 September 1907 – 23 March 1931) was a charismatic Indian revolutionary*
* who participated in the mistaken murder of a junior British police officer
*
* in what was to be retaliation for the death of an Indian nationa ...
and
Shivaram Rajguru
Shivaram Hari Rajguru (24 August 1907 – 23 March 1931) was an Indian revolutionary from Maharashtra (then Bombay State), known mainly for his involvement in the assassination of a British police officer named John Saunders. He was an active m ...
.
Their bodies were secretly cremated at the banks of the River Sutlej.
Reactions to the executions
The executions were widely reported in the press, especially as they took place on the eve of the annual convention of the
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
in
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
. The new york reported:
B. R. Ambedkar
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...
, writing in an editorial in his newspaper ''Janata'', blamed the British government for its decision to go ahead with the executions, despite strong popular support for the revolutionaries. He felt that the decision to execute the trio was not taken in the true spirit of justice, but was driven by the
Labour Party-led British government's fear of backlash from the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
and a need to appease public opinion in England. The
Gandhi-Irwin pact, signed just weeks before the execution, was viewed by the
Conservatives
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
as having dented the prestige of the
British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
. In such a situation, if the British government or the Viceroy of India commuted the death sentence awarded to the trio convicted of assassinating a British policeman, it would have given the Conservatives more ammunition to criticize an already weak British government in the parliament.
Legacy
National Martyrs Memorial is located at
Hussainiwala
Hussainiwala is a village near Firozpur city in Firozpur district in Punjab state, India. It lies near the bank of the Sutlej river. The village is on the border with Pakistan, opposite the Pakistani village of Ganda Singh Wala. It is a border ...
, where Sukhdev, along with Bhagat Singh and Rajguru, were cremated. A
Martyrs' Day Martyrs' Day is an annual day observed by nations to salute the martyrdom of soldiers who lost their lives defending the sovereignty of the nation. The actual date may vary from one country to another. Here is a list of countries and Martyrs' Days.
...
(Shaheed Diwas) is observed on March 23 in their memory. Tributes and homage are paid at the memorial.
Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies
Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies (SSCBS), previously known as College of Business Studies, is a premier institute for management studies under Delhi University, India. It is named after Sukhdev Thapar, who was a prominent freedom fight ...
, a constituent college of the
University of Delhi
Delhi University (DU), formally the University of Delhi, is a collegiate central university located in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1922 by an Act of the Central Legislative Assembly and is recognized as an Institute of Eminence (IoE) ...
, is named in memory of Sukhdev. It was established in August 1987.
Amar Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar Inter-State Bus Terminal is the main bus stand of Ludhiana city, the birthplace of Sukhdev.
See also
*
Ashfaqulla Khan
Ashfaqulla Khan (22 October 1900 – 19 December 1927) was an Indian independence activist in the Indian independence movement and co-founder of the Hindustan Republican Association.
Early life
Khan was born in the Shahjahanpur district of th ...
*
Kakori Train Robbery
The Kakori Train robbery (''prapt'' of Kakori Conspiracy) was a train robbery that took place at Kakori, a village near Lucknow, on 9 August 1925, during the Indian Independence Movement against the British Raj. It was organised by Hindustan R ...
*
Naujawan Bharat Sabha
Naujawan Bharat Sabha (NBS, sometimes spelled Nau Jawan Bharat Sabha, with the acronym NJBS) ( Youth Society of India) was a left-wing Indian association that sought to foment revolution against the British Raj by gathering together worker and pe ...
*
Revolutionary movement for Indian independence
The Revolutionary movement for Indian Independence was the part of the Indian independence movement comprising the actions of violent underground revolutionary factions. Groups believing in armed revolution against the ruling British fall into t ...
References
Further reading
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thapar, Sukhdev
Punjabi Hindus
Punjabi people
1907 births
1931 deaths
Executed revolutionaries
Indian revolutionaries
People from Ludhiana
20th-century executions by British India
Executed Indian people
People executed by British India by hanging
People executed for murdering police officers
National College of Arts alumni